It is now nearing the end of March of my senior year, and my long, treacherous journey through high school is almost behind me. In two short months I will be saying my goodbyes to my teachers, the table in the senior section I’ve learned to call home and, of course, the infamous sandwich line.

I like to think I have navigated life as a second semester senior fairly well, and as I am half way to victory I’ve learned quite a bit. Here is what I’ve learned as to how you can succeed with a socially acceptable lack of effort.

#1: Suck it up and do your homework (or at least the easy assignments). The devil on your shoulder will constantly whisper in your ear that it’s second semester, and how much does this really matter? It does matter, and it can help a lot more than you think.

Realistically, there will be a test, most likely two, down the road that you will forget about because you’re a senior, and assignment planners are a piece of your past. When this day comes it will be nice to know you don’t have a glaring 0 percent on homework for the quarter. That little bit of credit is essential to cushion the blow of that questionable test grade. Giving up 10 minutes between your Netflix binge to do that Spanish worksheet is worth it, I promise.

#2: Don’t stress too much. Obviously, it’s important to care about your grades, and the dreaded fate-worse-than-death idea of getting rescinded from your school for a line of Ds on your report card is still very real. However, I don’t go into many tests with sweaty palms and a compression headache anymore.

I have actually found unexpected benefits in this every now and then. As it turns out, when I’m not so distracted with how stressed out I am I sometimes have an easier time actually remembering what I have learned.

#3: Don’t be obnoxious. Everyone cringes at the kid in class who is way too open about not caring anymore in front of the teacher. They’re doing their best to work with a bunch of kids with questionable levels of motivation. Also, it’s a lot easier to have fun in class when you don’t think your teacher wants to throw textbooks at you.

#4: Have some fun. I know it sounds cliche, but you’re a second semester senior, so if you get the invitation to take a beach drive or a Dairy Queen run at 9 p.m. on a Tuesday night, take it. Live a little.